Other jobs: Worked for 14 years as the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, where his most prominent role was handing out punishments for player misconduct . . . Was the general manager of the Chicago Bulls from 1978-86, and planted the seeds of a dynasty by selecting Michael Jordan with the third overall pick in 1984.
As a player: A 6-4 guard, Thorn was an All-America at West Virginia and the No. 2 overall pick of Baltimore in 1963 (Art Heyman was chosen first by the Knicks) . . . Constantly in the shadows of fellow Mountaineer Jerry West (class of '60), Thorn played eight seasons in the NBA and averaged 10.8 points . . . He was all-rookie in 1964 along with Heyman, Jerry Lucas, Nate Thurmond and teammate Gus Johnson.
As a coach: Became an assistant coach for the Nets in 1973 and, led by Julius Erving, won an ABA championship in 1974. He became head coach of St. Louis in 1975, but was fired in midseason. He also served as an interim coach of the Bulls in 1981-82 going 15-15 after Jerry Sloan was dismissed.
Triviality: Thorn was an outstanding first baseman in college and led the Southern Conference in RBI as a junior. In his senior year, he was hospitalized after being beaned on the left side of his head by a throw from a teammate catcher trying to gun down an opposing baserunner and never played baseball again . . . He was so coveted coming out of high school that the West Virginia Legislature actually passed a resolution urging him to attend the state's university . . . Thorn's father, Joe, was briefly in the St. Louis Cardinals organization and was the Princeton (W.Va.) police chief. Joe Thorn served in the Marines in World War II and was wounded at Iwo Jima.
